Another week gone by! I swear now that we’re in September it’s going to be Christmas before we know it! This week I’ve been reading the new Elena Ferrante book, continuing with the Broken Earth trilogy and enjoying some surreal short stories. I hope you enjoy reading this week’s reading diary!
Disclosure: titles with an asterisk* were gifted by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I’m an affiliate for Blackwell’s, so this post contains affiliate links to their site. If you buy a book via my links, I’ll earn a small commission at no extra cost to you – thank you!
FRIDAY 28 AUGUST
Remember in last week’s post when I said I wasn’t sure if it was me or the book when I couldn’t concentrate on Sunlight Hours*? Turns out it is unfortunately the book. I’ve been on such a good streak of choosing books I’ll enjoy lately that this is a disappointment! It’s been so long since I’ve had one that really didn’t work for me.
I think Sunlight Hours* will be a great book for the right reader. It’s got history and mystery all wrapped up in one. It makes good use of diary entries within the story. There are strong family ties running throughout. I just couldn’t make myself care about the mystery side of things. The characters feel a bit contrived, and I was very aware that I was reading a book. That might sound weird but I’m sure you know what I mean! The characters never really leapt out of the pages and became their own people. But it happens, onwards and upwards.
I finish it around 9pm and listen to another hour of The Henna Wars. Annoyingly, I also start a new cross stitch but then realise my hour’s work was wasted because I hadn’t counted properly… But an hour’s audiobook time is never wasted at least! I adore the relationship between Nishat and her sister Priti, so any time spent with them is golden.
Before bed, I try and read a few pages of The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin but my brain is mush. Jemisin is not to be read with a mushy brain.
SATURDAY 29 AUGUST
Brain decidedly un-mushed, I start The Obelisk Gate properly on Saturday morning. If you haven’t already read The Fifth Season, then you need to do yourself a favour and grab a copy. Even if you don’t think you’re a SFF fan, do it anyway. The first 40 or so pages of The Obelisk Gate are mainly me trying to find my feet in this world again, but I quickly catch up. I read The Fifth Season early in July and I still needed to remind myself of events. If you’re going to read these, I highly recommend reading the trilogy fairly close together or you might end up lost. Plus, you’ll WANT to read them all in close proximity, they’re that good.
One of my favourite things about fantasy/dystopian/sci-fi is when new communities are being formed. I love seeing everyone adjust and adapt to their new climate, finding their roles and purpose. That’s where I’m at currently with The Obelisk Gate and I’m loving it.
In the evening (after an accidental two-hour nap) I settle down to cross-stitch and listen to the last two hours of The Henna Wars. Don’t tell me my Saturday nights aren’t goals. I can say without a doubt that I need a Netflix movie adaptation of The Henna Wars STAT. It will be the PERFECT feel-good film! I quickly add it to my August Audiobook round-up, I wasn’t expecting to finish it so fast! Clearly I underestimated how addicted I would become.
I end up reading more of The Obelisk Gate before bed but fall asleep with my book in my hand. That’s no indication of the book, I’m just a very sleepy person. 160 pages read today.
SUNDAY 30 AUGUST
In the morning I watch Guardians of the Galaxy 2, which I thought I’d already seen but evidently not. Baby Groot is the cutest and yes, I am several years late to the Baby Groot party, but I don’t care.
Then it’s back to The Obelisk Gate for the rest of the day! I feel like Jemisin is delving deeper than ever into the magic of orogeny in this book, and I really need to concentrate to appreciate and understand this complex magic system. It’s really difficult to talk about second and third books in a series without spoiling the first book! So I’ll just say I’m enjoying spending more time with a minor character from book one in The Obelisk Gate.
Although my investment in the characters makes me want to keep reading, the book itself isn’t quite as gripping as The Fifth Season. But I think that’s to be expected with a second book. This is often where a lot more world-building takes place. I don’t mind a slower pace, and there’s still a decent amount of action amid all the planning, talking and adapting to new environments.
I have to put it down with only 50 pages to go when I feel sleepy. I’ll finish it on Monday morning, as it’s a Bank Holiday here, yay!
MONDAY 31 AUGUST
My Bank Holiday Monday gets off to a great start as I finish up the last 50 pages of The Obelisk Gate with a cup of tea, wrapped in a blanket. Autumn is definitely in the air here! Jemisin does ramp up the action in those last 50 pages. I’m very excited to see how she’ll draw all the threads together in The Stone Sky, but that’s for later in September.
I then spend longer than I should have writing up my August wrap up, so do check that out if you haven’t already! Then I start a new book on audio, A Black Women’s History of the United States by Daina Ramey Berry and Kali N. Gross.
In the evening, I don’t really feel like reading, so I watched like two hours of YouTube instead. I then start a short story collection to see if that can hold my attention. It sounds really good, it’s called Outsiders*, edited by Alice Slater. I’m not supposed to be accepting non-translated review requests, but then I saw there was a story by Julia Armfield in it… and my will power dissolved.
All I manage to read are the first two, the first of which was Wendigo by Julia Armfield and as expected it was fabulous and grim. Then I read Francine by Anna Wood, which is okay. I’m not really fussed on endless descriptions of drugs and drug-fuelled antics.
TUESDAY 1 SEPTEMBER
I want to get today off to a better reading start than yesterday, so I enjoy another short story from Outsiders* with my breakfast. This one was by Eley Williams and captured all of the cruelty of adolescent girls. I read a few more stories with lunch, including the EXCELLENT Peep Hole by Leone Ross. I’ve had my eye on her book Come Let Us Sing Anyway, so I’m thrilled with this little taster of her writing. The following two stories by Kirsty Logan and Lena Mohamed are also great, so this collection is looking up so far!
By the way, Jenna at @jennareadsbooks is again hosting #StorySeptember – check this post for details!
Then in the evening it’s time to start one of my most anticipated reads of the years: The Lying Life of Adults* by Elena Ferrante! The lovely folk at Europa Editions kindly sent me a free copy to review and I’m absolutely loving it so far! It’s translated again by the incredible Ann Goldstein. Elena Ferrante’s prose and Ann Goldstein’s translation are the ultimate duo. It’s such a joy to read that I end up devouring 160 pages in no time in the evening.
The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante follows Giovanna as she comes to grips with the adult world. I love coming-of-age stories, especially with female protagonists, so it’s pretty much a given I’ll continue to love this. Ferrante always has such interesting things to say on the use of Italian dialect too. GAH this book is too good.
I’m also still listening to A Black Women’s History of the United States when I’m cooking or doing chores. It feels perfect for September, like I’m going back to school but actually learning something worthwhile.
WEDNESDAY 2 SEPTEMBER
I carry on reading stories from Outsiders when I have a spare moment during the day. I loved the dark academia, fairy-tale vibes of Jen Campbell’s story and Sinkhole (with a heart for the ‘o’) is delightfully dark yet strangely romantic.
The second half of the collection maybe isn’t quite as strong, but there are still some standouts. To Peel an Orange by Beverley Ho is a beautiful little vignette about a young woman trying to feel at home in Hong Kong and forge a meaningful relationship with her grandmother. The Lady’s Not for Burning by Sarvat Hasin might be my favourite story in the collection – did someone say haunted house? She has a novel coming out with Dialogue Books in 2021 so I’ll eagerly look out for that. Overall, I’m impressed! Anthologies scare me a bit because they’re often very up and down, but this was solid.
Evening arrives and I have a date with Elena Ferrante. I’m sitting by an open window, wrapped in a blanket and listening to the rain pour outside – literally a perfect reading scenario. Although I’m still engrossed in The Lying Life of Adults, I feel like it loses a bit of steam in the second half. I don’t feel like I’m reading with as much urgency as yesterday.
One thing I’ve learned about myself as a reader over the years is that, although I love reading, I also love sleep. Some people might find it impossible to go to sleep with only 30 pages left of a book, but that’s exactly what I do. As well as valuing my eight hours, I always look forward to starting the day off by finishing a book with breakfast.
THURSDAY 3 SEPTEMBER
I sit down with Elena Ferrante to finish Giovanna’s story before starting work. I can’t make up my mind about the ending, and I can’t discuss it without spoiling it! But overall I am happy with this book. I think anyone who enjoys Ferrante’s work already or enjoys character studies and coming-of-age stories will like it too. And if you haven’t already started the Neapolitan novels, what are you waiting for?
I don’t have the chance to pick up a new book until 6pm, but I do listen to another half an hour or so of A Black Women’s History of the United States while I’m prepping tea and washing dishes. When it’s time to settle down in the evening, I pick up Ogadinma Or, Everything Will Be All Right by Ukamaka Olisakwe. This was one of my pre-orders for September as I love Indigo Press and the books they publish.
Ogadinma is described as a ‘feminist classic in the making, [introducing] a heroine for whom it is impossible not to root and [announcing] the author as a gifted chronicler of the patriarchal experience.’ Sign me up! I really like Olisakwe’s writing style right off the bat. It’s descriptive and evocative, yet easy to read. Last night I read 135 pages, almost half of it. I might have read more but my dog was being a drama queen so I spent a long time making sure she was okay. (She is, she’s just dramatic.)
Also you blog readers are getting a sneak peek of my latest cross stitch! I think this might have looked better embroidered given the cool pattern of the book, but I can only work with the skills I have, ha. I think it looks okay!
Hope everyone has a great weekend!
LOL, speaking of Christmas, there’s a flat at the end of my road that has a Christmas tree in the window now, and I am… very confused. ??
I think I’m definitely going to have to reread The Fifth Season and then go straight into the sequel and final book. I’d better not just reread the first and stop there!
My sister is like you and she’ll happily leave the last ten pages of a book and go to sleep instead. On the opposite side of the scale, you have someone like me, who stays up late to read more of a book she isn’t even enjoying very much, just because it’s ‘required’ reading (for book club). ?
Still loving all the cross-stitch pics! How do you decide what book cover image to recreate?
Maybe it’s a Halloween tree?! Hopefully! Or they’re just so sick of 2020 they’re like screw it, let’s celebrate Christmas for four months!
I’m trying to think whether I’ve ever stayed up late to finish a book, and I honestly don’t think I ever have! How do you manage to stay awake when you’re reading a book you’re not enjoying? That would just be a perfect recipe for me to fall asleep instead, ha!
And thank you! I just have a pretty good idea of what covers and designs will translate well to cross-stitch!
I don’t see any orange… the green and red definitely makes me think of Christmas, haha. But hey, whatever brings them joy!
It was very difficult, I must admit. ? I also haven’t read anything since, so, thank you, book, for extending my slump. ?? (However, Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex is released this week and I’m actually very excited to give it a go!)
Ooh, very cool!